Day 4, Sunday 3rd February - Pai

Pai overstay..... After three days, I finally get an internet connection if only to pick up the usual bad news, but now I can really get to grips with my surroundings and make the most of my stay here. As I venture out, the lovely receptionist reminds me that free coffee is available. Great, but I still need to pop out for something else, but Palm House is convenient for most things I need. Suitable refreshed, I make plans for the day. The day starts cloudy and there is still a chill in the air but when the cloud breaks the temperature rises considerably. It's time for a motorbike ride. My accommodation is convenient for that too. I soon procured an automatic and a local map. That's it I'm off. It's not hard to imagine the freedom that offers. All the main sites I'm likely to see are listed on the map and I soon find others. There is a natural loop around the valley of the Pai river and I head off initially back in the direction of Chiang Mai with my 'shopping list' which starts at the petrol station and includes: Coffee in Love, Pam Bok Waterfall, Kong Lan/Pai Canyon, WW2 Memorial Bridge, Tha Pai Hot Springs, and Wat Phra That Mae Yen. To this I add Wat Gong Geang and the site of a land-slip.
Wat Gong Geang..... Wat Gong Geang is a working temple just off the main road to Chiang Mai just a few kilometres out of town. Its Shan (Burmese) style architecture with a tiered roof is typical in this area.
Coffee in Love..... Coffee in Love is a good example of the enterprise of local farmers to take advantage of the mass influx of tourists in recent years. In this case they focus on coffee as a significant cash crop in this area coupled with the fact that Pai attracted huge attention after it was featured in the romantic Thai film, Pai in Love. Its location offers wonderful (romantic) views of the Pai river valley and is beautifully landscaped. It's located just a few kilometres along the main road to Chiang Mai.
Pam Bok Waterfall..... Pam Bok Waterfall, on the road to Chiang Mai before Pai Canyon, is a secluded waterfall with high cliffs, making this a very cool place to escape the heat and bathe in the shade during the dry season.
The Land Slip..... The Land Slip is a recent phenomenon and doesn't feature in the published guides. It is an excellent example of the enterprise of a local farmer whose livelihood was a risk after a land-slip, which has widened year-on-year affected his farm. He has created a walkway to view the land-slip on the hillside and collected together the produce that he still has to offer to tourists. You can sample roselle juice and wine, jam, peanuts, dried bananas and other produce and the farmer only expects a modest donation. It's well worth a visit on the way to Pam Bok waterfall if only to use the toilets.
On the main road I take lunch at one of many restaurants, impressed by the views and the service.
Pai Canyon (Kong Lan)..... Pai Canyon is signposted from the Chiang Mai road, approximately 8 km from Pai. Somewhat optimistically described as Pai's answer to the Grand Canyon, it's more accurately described as narrow red ridge with steep-sided valleys, both sides filled with pine and dipterocarp forests. The steep 50 m drop either side and stunning views over the surrounding countryside are impressive, but the path is extremely narrow in some places and requires a scramble in others. A set of steps up to a viewing platform provides the safest way to admire the scenery and the canyon makes the perfect spot for a sunset and, incidentally while I am there, a thunderstorm and resultant rainbow (wonderful).
WWII Memorial Bridge..... The WWII Memorial Bridge is just a little further along the road to Chiang Mai, approximately 8 km from Pai. The original bridge here was built by the occupying Japanese who found the Pai River a testing obstacle in their progress to occupy Burma. The steel truss bridge is not the original bridge but was in use for many years before construction of the concrete road bridge beside it. The bridge was assembled in its current position rather more recently from one that had been in situ at Chiang Mai. The steel and wood construction reminds one of the Bridge over the River Kwai.
Tha Pai Hot Springs..... Just after the WWII Memorial Bridge there is a left turn back to Pai completing a loop around the valley. A few kilometres along this road is a turning to the Tha Pai Hot Springs. Here there is a facility for bathing in the hot spring water but on the occasion of my visit the spring was closed after the thunderstorm. Entry is 200 baht for foreigners, 40 baht for Thais.
Wat Phra That Mae Yen..... Wat Phra That Mae Yen is a working temple in the foothills of the mountains on the far side of the Pai river along the back road from the Memorial Bridge. It is constructed in typical Burmese style and is on the tourist trail offering a wonderful view of the sunset. Presently there is construction of a large Buddhist image in Lanna style on the hill above, but access is difficult awaiting construction of a stairway.
This completes the loop, the back road running back into Pai. It's therefore possible to witness the sunset and make it back before dark. I miss dinner relying on snacks, so I can concentrate on updating my notes.
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